Social care plans will lead to more expensive, lower quality care

11 Feb 2013

Ruth Porter appears on Radio 5 Live with Shelagh Fogarty

Ruth Porter talked with Shelagh Fogarty on Radio 5 Live to discuss the Government's decision to set the cap on long-term social care bills at £75,000, more than double the £35,000 cap recommended by the Dilnot Commission.

"The idea that we can somehow cap the contributions that people pay is actually a deeply flawed one," argued Ms Porter.

"What we're going to end up with is a system where we have more expensive care and it's delivered at a lower quality."

Ruth Porter suggested that to deliver the best quality affordable care, a sysytem is need in which people save for their old age and pay as much as they can for care themselves. At present day, most saving is done through buying property so it is inevitable that social care is partly funded through the sale of property.

The proposed cap is likely to act as a disincentive to save and care for relatives. Ms Porter argued that as the Government is financing this, it is likely that a cap will then be necessary on care home fees which will either result in "lower standards in the care industry or we'll see the industry struggling and facing a financial crisis."